This is very anecdotal, but recently I moved to live a 15 minute walk from my office. Since the car keys went away and the walk to and from the office was introduced, I feel much healthier and happier.
Now it could be that I moved, so there are certainly possible external factors that are not the walk, but I really do feel it is the walk that is the major contributor to my days feeling so much better.
I've even found myself justifying silly things to myself just to keep the walk up. For example, the other day I was running late but I still wanted to walk. Walking in and not being late was impossible, so I caught a taxi into the office, just so I could walk home without worrying about leaving my car behind.
I moved so I could walk to work and it has made such a huge difference on my quality of life, crazy how much different a 15 minute walk is compared to even a short drive. Not sure exactly why, but for me it's a world of difference
Any amount of walking is good for you. The steps help certain personality types get it done, but isn't for everybody. Just park your car the furthest from your office and you'll feel better.
I walk to lunch and the round trip is about 20 minutes. I feel better after every one. Sometimes when I need a break at work, I'll just take a 5-10 minute walk and I come back ready to go.
I am considering actually measuring my mood but it looks like the office helps me.
45 minutes of walking after work does a lot of good to my mental health. I also do a sort of one meal a day “diet” where i consume just coffee at work, and it actually costs a lot less.
Worst case is that I leave late and it’s cold so i take an uber, but I actually prefer it.
This wouldn't apply to everyone's circumstances, but I found it helpful to go for a walk away from the office in the middle of every day, weather permitting. (I worked in a city with interesting scenery; I'd eat lunch in 15 minutes, then wander around exploring for 45 minutes.) It was refreshing, and gave me perspective that there was a world outside of the office.
> A brief walk outside to and from the office allows me to reset into work-mode or home-mode.
Setting the distance between the home and the office to be something walkable, but not too close is a great hack to force yourself to move more. Mine is about 2km, so going to the work and back gives me a nice push toward those recommended 7000 steps a day, plus does wonders to my mind - especially in the sunny mornings when it's a pure joy.
I've been walking to work (2km, 20 mins) every day for almost a year now, rain or shine. Previously I drove about an hour to get to work. There's a huge difference in alertness and energy when I sit down at my desk... early morning exercise is well worth it.
I have roughly similar problems; for instance, I could walk more by taking public transportation instead of driving, but that would add overhead disproportionate to the benefit (I'd lose about 1.5 hours out of every day, and a huge amount of schedule flexibility).
But: can you do things like park further away from work?
When I lived in Ann Arbor, I was walking distance from the office. I really miss looking forward to that walk (listening to music and clearing my head for an hour a day), and I was definitely healthier then than I am now.
You may have been more active than usual, also? Even just walking to get places each day, instead of spending your entire day sitting at a desk or in a car, makes a huge difference.
it's crazy how something seemingly minor, the necessity to walk some real distance for meeting daily needs, has such a wide range of benefits. Unconsciously, it makes you eat better and less, otherwise the walking would be very comfortable. It also makes you care about your immediate environment a lot more directly, because you experience it a lot more directly.
When you don't have that, it's an uphill battle. You have to carve out dedicated time to exercise, and you have to be very conscious of your diet.
Walking makes for a healthier life, it really does, rather than only the healthy opting in for walking.
I live 1.4 miles from home, and walking to and from work is one of the best choices I ever made for my physical and mental well-being. If you don't walk to work and can, I highly recommend trying it.
I totally agree. I take a 15 minute walk every morning and it has done wonders for my mental health and productivity. I feel like I can more easily transition from just waking up to sitting down to begin coding for the day.
I found that living where there is a non-car option increased my physical fitness. Instead of knowing I should exercise but making an excuse I just walked to the bus stop every day. This was just a couple blocks needed to get to the offices, but a lot more walking than I'd do before because it no longer was something special to do it.
Too bad I've been transferred to a different office now, one with not transit and nothing in walking distances.
I'm not going to claim that it improves my creativity or makes me a better person, but for the last few years I've generally taken at least a half hour out of the middle of my workday to walk (I'm lucky enough to work next to a park). It massively improves my mood, and I'd fight hard against giving it up.
There was a tube (underground metro) strike in London the past few days, so I walked to work, leaving my apartment at about 6.30am and arriving in the office at 8am, mostly along the river. It was excellent and I'm considering doing it 1-2 days a week even when I don't need to.
I absolutely love walking. Two walks a day (typically a long ~45 minute one after breakfast, and a shorter ~20 minute walk after lunch) are non-negotiable activities.
I feel _so_ much better after a walk; I have better concentration and increased motivation to tackle difficult problems. Even if I'm having a particularly busy day or with a deadline coming up, I'd rather sacrifice some personal time after hours than my walks.
The most underrated comment in this thread. In 2016 I started walking to work and since then have been impressed with the improvement in my overall well-being.
I was just remarking to a colleague today how beneficial a lunchtime walk really is. The walk provided:
1. Fresh air
2. Exercise
3. A chance for the eyes to change focal range from the fixed distance of the shitty monitors work provides.
4. A chance to take a brief phone call from a recruitment agent to discuss a better job
5. A chance meeting of an old colleague I had not seen for nearly twenty years as he also took a walk.
6. I was away from the desk when the boss had a crappy task so someone else had to do it.
7. I found a new coffee shop I will revisit
8. I solved a long running problem by being able to walk and think
9. I am sure the stress levels were reduced!
Now it could be that I moved, so there are certainly possible external factors that are not the walk, but I really do feel it is the walk that is the major contributor to my days feeling so much better.
I've even found myself justifying silly things to myself just to keep the walk up. For example, the other day I was running late but I still wanted to walk. Walking in and not being late was impossible, so I caught a taxi into the office, just so I could walk home without worrying about leaving my car behind.
Walking is great.
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